Political Commentary & Opinion

The Trump administration continues to move on its campaign promise to restructure the North American Free Trade Agreement, with round five of NAFTA negotiations starting last week. In the heat of the discussions between officials from the United States, Canada, and Mexico, it’s easy to lose sight of the benefits that free trade affords all…

Anyone who has ever seen footage of a Black Friday stampede knows the holiday season can bring out the worst in people. So it’s important to remember that it can also bring out the best—and to realize that government can inadvertently dampen our more compassionate impulses. Something about the season encourages us to be more…

Each year, I love to celebrate Thanksgiving. It’s a time for family, fellowship, and reflection. It’s a time of thanks. I’m especially grateful for the holiday this year. It has been a long, divisive year—not only in Washington, D.C., but across the nation. At times, it can be difficult to watch, read, or hear the…

In March, President Donald Trump issued an executive order to spur a comprehensive reorganization of the executive branch. It instructed each federal department head to submit a plan to improve “efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability” by June 30. Think tanks and members of the general public were also encouraged to submit plans. The administration is now…

A photo of a Virginia woman saluting President Donald Trump’s motorcade with a middle finger got her fired from her job after it went viral—but rather than being embarrassed or even ashamed, she’s savoring her 15 minutes of fame. That’s as you might expect, alas, given the political and cultural zeitgeist of the day. “All…

The Senate Finance Committee passed a version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act last week, which now heads to the full Senate floor for a vote. Some claim the bill leaves behind small and pass-through businesses, that it doesn’t give them enough of a tax cut when compared to bigger corporations. Under the Senate…

Republicans have long been known as “the stupid party.” They do stupid things, such as waiting until mid-November to push a must-pass tax cut that should have been done by April. But in recent weeks the GOP has finally been showing some brains and some backbone on taxes. It is using its majorities in Congress…

There aren’t many issues the Supreme Court has managed to sidestep, but political gerrymandering is one of them. Until now. The court recently heard oral arguments in Gill v. Whitford, a Wisconsin case that involves how voting district lines are drawn—an issue Justice Felix Frankfurter called a “political thicket” that the courts should avoid. We…

For most American families, Thanksgiving is a time to gather with loved ones, eat delicious food, and perhaps watch some football. But not everyone is pleased with the celebration of this holiday, and some have taken to maligning its “originators,” the Pilgrims. An editorial in Al Jazeera labeled Thanksgiving a “thoroughly nauseating affair,” one that…

The speaker at my high school graduation was my father, Justice Antonin Scalia. Although he delivered a fine speech, he did not deliver the line I remember most vividly from that day—I did. It was my responsibility to introduce him with a brief speech of my own. I told the assembled throng about my father’s…

In prime time on Thursday, July 16, 1964, Sen. Barry Goldwater, R-Ariz., was introduced to the Republican National Convention and the country by the great unifier, Richard Nixon, who predicted that when Goldwater got through, President Lyndon Johnson would be singing “Home on the Range.” He urged the faithful to ignore the polls and the…

Talk of amnesty deals are making the rounds again in Washington. Here’s what you need to know. Apparently, the battles over tax reform, Obamacare, and the looming spending bill aren’t enough to keep Congress busy. There are increasing rumblings that some lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are looking for ways to give legal…